It is really a hard thing you are going through Amy and I pray God will give you wisdom on this all. I for one would not judge you if you decide to return little Zoey. I know with Kyra, I was concerned and asked the vet a lot of questions because I had watched a little one suffer with hydro before and I don't know if my heart could of stood it after just watching our little Lolita suffer so much. It is not always about the money, it also is about how strong we think we can be through it all. Honestly if there is no hydro and the vet feels the fontanelle could close I would probably just be extra careful with her and keep a close eye on it. Kyra is a joy and hers according to the vet has closed completely. If you do have the funds I would recommend having a specialist give her a complete check up and make sure she is otherwise healthy. Continuing to pray for you and little Zoey.

I am sorry to hear about little Zoey, breaks my heart. How much does she weigh?

I'd just have to help the poor little creature and make her last days as happy and loving as I could. I'm afraid if we were parted, I'd always be wondering what happened to her in the last moments? Sometimes I feel these paradigms are presented to us almost as an honour, to be the final host - but then I'm like that and perhaps a more objective way will be seen by others?

I have to agree- I would be exactly this way.

I'm the same way as you. When my first Yorkie went to her first checkup a couple of days after I got her, our vet thought she could have a heart condition. It turned out she was okay upon further check up, but I told the vet and my husband that I was already in love with her, and I could not give her up. My husband felt the same way as I did. I'd also worry so much about my baby, and I'd worry also about what she was thinking about me deserting her. I'm not noble enough to purposely go into taking in a dog with high health risks or problems, but once they are mine, there is nothing I wouldn't do to care for my baby as long as it is in their best interests. The times I cared for my Rainbow Bridge babies when they were ill were also special times in the lives we shared. I wish they hadn't been sick, but it was my privilege to care for them.

Still, I think Amy should have Zoey evaluated by an internal medicine specialist so that she knows what health risks she will have to cope with. I think it's the only way she will have any peace in her decision, whichever that it.

Please go to a specialist, can you? A Vet Internist would be a good one to see. A soft spot doesn't guarantee hydro at all.

Only you know what you can and can't do for this little one, but I sure would hate to see her go back to her breeder. Do you think you could ask the breeder if she'd be willing to surrender her to a rescue you know of, and still give you a refund?

i highly doubt she would do that she wouldnt refund my money n let me keep zoey...she only wants her back with a full refund that would be the only thing she would do

So Amy, turn this around. Lets say you don't take your little one to a specialist and instead turn her back over for something that might happen. How would you feel a year from now if you found out :

A) she did have it and was not being well taken care of.

B) she didn't have it and was living happily with someone else.

Or

C) the breeder had her euthanized without finding out more information.


Again, these are things you can only answer for yourself.

Have been spot-scanning most threads lately due to eye problems but am I right in understanding that you have had your dog now for almost two months and are not just now learning of her problems, yet considering returning her? I re-read a couple things today that makes me understand now that you are not in the 72 hour window of just having purchased a new puppy you've just had into the vet for it's initial well-puppy once-over, just found these things out. You have apparently had your dog for about two months and are just now thinking of returning her? If that is right, that materially changes things. Time to think of some more things.

If I'm wrong, I apologize, but if that is true and if you have had her that long and knew of her problems but found out a couple more things or that something is a little worse than you'd been originally told, it seems to me that morally that little girl is yours now. I don't follow new puppy purchases and things here on YT that closely and was thinking from your OP on this thread you had just gotten your dog within the last couple days, found all of this out and realizing you maybe bit off more than you could chew medical expense-wise. But it now seems on doing some more reading today that's not the case and the dog has been in your care and custody for quite some considerable time. That being the case, it's time to think of this: A young little dog that has lived with you, acknowledged you as its new mommy/pack leader and become fond of you, trusts you and you love it to bits cannot now be returned to its breeder whom you now are understanding is less than stellar. At this late date, that is not really a choice anymore for several reasons. Sure, if you've just gotten a dog and found out it's very ill, maybe going to have lots of problems and you've just walked out of the vet clinic in shock realizing how you'd just recently been hoodwinked into thinking you'd gotten a very healthy, mixed-breed dog from a wonderful breeder and wanting to return the dog/get a full refund is still an understandable option one can consider when money might be very tight, especially if you've essentially just been given a death sentence for the dog during the well-puppy check-up.

But when you've known about the conditions, (and apparently now I understand the dog doesn't really even have a diagnosis of hydrocephalus so probably isn't in imminent danger of dying) you've lived with and cared for a baby for months, come to love and adore it, knows her quirks and little ways of behaving, nuzzling and cuddling, her night noises, know her feel and her cute personality, you know you won't be able to take her back some two months later and come home and still live with yourself! You'll miss that baby something fierce! It will cut you in two. Two months! That's a long time to grow an awful lot of love all around your heart and through your every single pore. I'm telling you from the experience of having returned a vet-diagnosed dog as near dying to a breeder within hours of buying her for a full refund, it hurts terribly. It hurts even when you've just barely met your dream dog - let alone when you've had her all this time and come to love her every fiber.

If you really have had her a long time, had time to know and adjust to her imperfections and birth defects, now is really the time to just love and nurse her through it with the help of the best veterinary care you can obtain. Once they've got your heart, in reality money concerns do move very, very far far far down the ladder even for very poor doglovers, who gladly incur debt where their dog's care and happiness are concerned. I know you are probably trying to think practically but now, two months in, is really too late for that - now is the time to just gather up your little girl, give her lots of TLC and seek out the best vets you can to learn how to best treat and protect her for the rest of her life. Sometimes the ones with the problems and the ones we have to be so careful around, spend so much time caring for, come to mean the very most to us, knowing how fragile life can be sometimes. And you purpose in your heart to give them the best life possible and set out to make it happen for them.

I hope all the members following this thread realize this. Many are acting as if this pup has been given a death sentence. It has NOT. Open fonts are not life threatening, and often close, and they do not lead to hydrocephalus.

@Yorkietalkjilly, Jeanne, you are spot on here.

I am praying that someone will advocate for Zoey, who it seems may be discarded due to a small defect that was know 2 months ago.

Amy has stated on other threads that this breeder has had pups with open fonts before, and they have not presented additional problems. I hope she doesn't give up on Zoey over this.

Once again, this dog has NOT been diagnosed with hydrocephalus, and has no symptoms of it, so until that happens, can we stop projecting images of a sick, suffering, expensive pup. That is not indicated at this point.

Prayers are going out to Zoey that her font closes and she lives a happy healthy life, and is adored.

@Maui Girl,

Please don't forget that this pup has additional concerns. I hate to see any thing dismissed as trivial when the OP is trying to get information. The best person to give this information and prognosis is a vet (or 2 or 3....10) who has actually examined Zoey.

I completely agree. I too didn't realize Amy had had Zoey for 2 months. I like some others thought she had just purchased her.

no i didnt just purchase her i never said i just purchased...all the other vets never really commented on her spoft...when i went to this vet he seemed very concerned that it was the size of an inch...he didnt say she has hydrocephalus he said often times with soft spots that large it could be an indicator...then he told me about her grade 1 knees (which i was confused about bec one vet said no the other said yes) now this vet said yes she has grade 1...the knew thing is her vulva is a in not completely out...back to the soft spot i thought it was gonna close bec the breeder told me and the drs didnt seem concerned about it except this last one...he said hes never seen one this large before n told me the possible consequences...this is what freaked me out...
p.s. someone on here told me to call the breeder n fake her out and say i will return zoey and see if she will just give me my money back without returning zoey (that was a long shot) she got frazzled said she couldnt talk because she was on her way to the lawyers office ( was that supposed to scare me?) shes getting a divorce (or so she claims) so she wanted to hint that she has a lawyer i guess? anyway she said for me to ship her back and then she will refund my money (what does she think i am that stupid?) i argued with her she said she doesnt have time and hung up in face...lynzy if your reading this i hope u kick her butt i know realize she is a greeder

I pray to the Lord all turns out well :hands:

I also pray little Zoey... poor baby, just wants to be loved :(

I wouldnt send her back for an open font and even if you do there is no guarantee she will give you your money back she hasnt been handeling this well anyway

Hydrocephalus is not a death sentence. I have a 5 year old and a 7 year old who have hydro. Neither have the soft spots. They both had other symptoms. She may or may not have hydro. Having a soft spot will definitley make it easier to diagnose through the spot rather than having the firm skull to try and diagnose. Get her checked out for hydro. If you love her it will be well worth the money. I have known dogs who lived their whole lives with soft spots and never had problems from it. I think everyone is getting excited without knowing facts. Please get her checked out with a specialist.

Yes I am aware of the minor LP which many have at an early age, and often firm up by 1 year. I also understand that an indented vulva "may" lead to UTIs in the future. Neither are life threatening.

I completely agree that a reputable Vet Specialist would be best to diagnose and assess, and I certainly hope Amy is seeking one. Knowing that Zoey is under 2 lbs at 18 weeks calls for seeing Vets that specialize in small dogs too.

Zoey obviously has a few defects to be assessed, but I am not at all sure that returning her to the breeder is the best option, or that it is even possible after having her for 2 months.

I wish the very best for Zoey, and for Amy.

I agree with this 100%.

:thumbup::thumbup: I do hope Amy will see get Zoey to a specialist soon to find out for sure what she is dealing with. It will either ease her fears, or prepare her for future care.

No, you really didn't say it was a recent purchase but I guess the fact that you were considering returning her is what gave me that impression since no purchase date was mentioned. I lept to conclusions you had just gotten her and just gotten a vet check, got the bad news and were sort of in shock, facing perhaps a lot of medical expenses due to possible hydrocephalus. A little poodle I bought years back did have a very severe case of hydrocephalus but to look at her at the breeder's house, I had no idea. I immediately named her Twinkie. Beautiful little glossy black, curly, vivacious poodle! I just thought a tiny poodle puppy with a big head, very short back, pompous little tail, precious little face, huge eyes, acting so frisky and playful, was darling. She was my little dream dog. But she took an almost immediate and serious turn for the worst when I got her home and she stayed down. My vet only gave her hours to live and thought she should immediately be put down due to her pain levels but when he called the breeder to complain why she's offered such a very seriously ill dog for sale rather than having her at the hospital, said breeder got hostile, insisted I bring her back at once, accused me essentially of doing something to her and was really a horrible person. It was truly a terrible, terrible situation. I guess that episode is one of the reasons I am so against buying from just any breeder unless they are well-respected and highly reputable, have spent years studying how best to breed for healthy, happy and good-tempered dogs that improve the breed and is dedicated to health-testing/certing her breeding pair.

I'm glad your baby hasn't been diagnosed with that condition though you will still need to have her checked frequently by a specialist. My sister's poodle had a lifetime open font that never fully closed except for some fibrous union the final mm.'s and her dog was able to live a cautious but essentially normal life with frequent vet checks.

All 3 of mine have some issues/ Some they came with some came out later. Roxie has the open fontenal as I mentioned earlier. I just keep her bow situated over the spot and have had no problems and she is almost 6. LP has unfortunately become so common that it is getting harder and harder to get one who doesn't have some degree of it or develop it. It may never be an issue either. Given you have had her for awhile, I would spend the money on a thorough exam with a small breed specialist and then make your decision. But only you can decide how much you can handle. I wish you luck in your decision.

Or kept the greeder kept Zoey in a cage and bred her until she was useless to her letting her live in her own filth and never getting vet care, grooming or human interaction.

She probably was really going to the lawyer's office;)

You trusted her completely by sending her cash-cash. So she needs to trust you by refunding you first, then you "send" Zoey back. I doubt she would go for that anyway. I'm actually very surprised that someone of her caliber even sent any puppy after getting $1500 in cash in the mail from a complete stranger.

Anyway, her divorce lawyer will do nothing as far as Zoey goes. She is just trying to scare you.

I really think you need to go to a specialist, that's #1. Are you planning on taking her to see one? #2 you need to get a lawyer or at least take her to small claims court.

:thumbup::thumbup:

:thumbup::thumbup:

please don't give this one back to the breeder.
It sounds like it might be best to cut your losses, give her to a rescue or even post her in the 'new home needed' section of YT.
If you still want another mix breed puppy I could probably find you any kind of mix you wanted from the shelter I work at :D

Alright i made a final decision i will be keeping zoey! it wasnt a tough call at all...shes my baby what ever happens we are in it together!

congrats! Did you end up taking her to a specialist? I hope she doesn't have issues in the future but you may want to start saving just in case :D